MLKday

Honor the transformational legacy of Dr. King with a day of positive action, community building and the sharing of good food!

Join Harvest Sacramento, Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services, The Oak Park Neighborhood Association, the California Food Literacy Center, the BHC Hub and Soil Born Farms for an afternoon community citrus harvest and a shared meal at the Oak Park Community Center.

This special MLK Day event will be held in the afternoon, following the Capital March for the Dream.

This is a fruit harvesting event.

Volunteers will be placed into groups of 5-10 people with a trained harvest group leader. Each group will receive a list of 3-5 tree sites to harvest, and will be provided with all necessary harvesting materials, including gloves, picker-poles, ladders, clippers and boxes.

Volunteers will carpool to each site and ideally be able to transport tools and harvested fruit between sites and then back to our initial meeting. It is extremely helpful if each group has a pick-up truck or van to help transport materials and fruit, so if you have this type of vehicle and are willing to allow the use of it, we would be grateful.

COMMUNITY MEAL: We will be serving a simple meal after the harvest to share our experiences and meet fellow volunteers from the other harvest groups.

YOUTH: Young children (3-10 yrs old) are welcome to join us, but will be asked to focus their energy on sorting, packing and transporting the fruit. Children under the age of 15 are required to have supervision from a parent/guardian, while youth 15-17 can attend without adult supervision, but must have a volunteer waiver signed by their parent/guardian.

In 1983, Ronald Reagan signed Martin Luther King Jr. Day into law. But it wasn’t until the new millennium when all 50 states officially celebrated it. The celebration of this holiday wasn’t just limited to the states; a few other countries, cities and provinces also celebrate it such as Toronto, Canada and a few Japanese cities.

However, when it comes to a local level, The MLK March presented by MLK365 celebrated its 32nd year of existence in Sacramento on Monday, January 21st, 2013. The march started 7:30 am in the morning at three locations; The Oak Park Community Center, Sacramento City College and Grant High School. The marchers starting from the Oak Park Community Center walked the full six miles, first passing by Sacramento City College and then continuing to the Convention Center. The marchers starting from Grant High School made their way down Del Paso Blvd to the convention center.

Towards the conclusion of the march all marchers received a very warm welcoming from the crowd gathered outside the convention center. The center was filled with tons of informational booths from The Black Parallel School Board, PG&E, and Sacramento Regional Transit to Local clothing and art vendors It was quite a view to see the crowd taking advantage of the many resources being offered. There was also tons of entertainment like singing and dancing. Few of the marchers were asked questions such as “what brought you out to the march” and “can you tell us about your experience” check out the quotes bellow so see their responses. Also check out the gallery bellow for photos of the event and the MlK365 website for more information.

Alexandria Jones

“My family bought me out to the march it was pretty good it was pretty different from last year”

Shaunte derrick

(The one in the middle)

Member of Delta sigma theta sorority Inc.

Elk Grove chapter.

“What brought me out to walk was I always like to serve my public and be in organizations that help with injustice being part of a sorority we would automatically come out and march for MLK and what he stood for. I loved the march its always wonderful to see people of all races come together and not only march for what he served for but also for the injustice”

Ray Newman

“This is my 3rd year marching I’ve marched with my basketball teams before, this time I came to the march I just wanted to bring my daughters and god daughters out. My experience during the march was good I walked from the Oak Park Community Center for the 1st time usually I come from Grant High School it seemed a little longer but it was fun.”

Fong Tran

“I think this is a great event where we pay homage to the folks that really struggled to give us the liberties we have today. Honestly it’s a good time to be out here with the community. For me I do the march with my friends every year its always a great time, even if its raining like it was 2 years ago. But it’s the dedication our city has our community has so I just love being out here with the folks

Every year, the The Martin Luther King Jr. Day “March for the Dream” takes place in Sacramento, starting from the Oak Park Community Center and Grant High school. People all over join in the march to remember Dr. King and celebrate his work and life. This video highlights the march starting from Oak Park and a few people who marched from all over Sacramento.

“Everybody can be great because everybody can serve.”said Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr Day is nationally known as a day of service. On this holiday, many people honor Dr. King’s life and legacy by giving back to the community in various ways. To many the holiday is “a day on, not a day off.”

In Sacramento, there are many opportunities to volunteer on this day of service all over the city.
The most widely known is the March for the Dream, put on every year by MLK365. There are many opportunities for day of volunteers. Volunteers can work as march monitors, security, village support, hospitality, and information.

The North Natomas Transportation Management Association is holding an event called 50 Bikes for 50 Kids. These kids are well deserving youth nominated by local youth organizations to build their own bike with the help of a volunteer. Volunteers can be bike builders, bike mechanics bike recipients, check in, volunteer check in, and general event support.

“United, the volunteers and youth are able to promote the importance of healthy recreation that encourages both sustainable transportation and a better future for the community as a whole,” says Abby Harding, a program coordinator with North Natomas TMA.

The Black United Fund of Sacramento Valley and The Talking Drums Newsletter are holding their Annual MLK Day of Services. Donations of unworn winter clothing such as hats, scarves, gloves, sweaters and socks are currently being taken. On Sunday, January 27th, ask donations will be assembled and taken to local homeless shelters from 2pm to 4pm.

There are many other opportunities to give back on this day, provided by the City of Sacramento, Hands on Sacramento and many non-profit organizations needing some help. For more information on these opportunities and others, click here.

“From The Community to the Classroom” is a movement, created in response to the 2003 hate crimes along with educational inequities occurring in the Davis, California school System. A documentary was created to tell the story of how together youth and adults helped their community overcome its 21st century racism.

“Many good folks, including President Obama, have labeled education as the civil rights issue of our time,” says Jann Murray-García, M.D., and M.P.H. Assistant Professor at the University of Davis’ Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing. Youth In Focus is a Central Valley based nonprofit with the mission to “educate under-represented youth and their adult allies in youth-led action research”.

Youth In Focus recruited during the research phase of this movement to assist in training student in non-violent social change strategies and action research. “Educational inequity by race and class are morally and economically expensive, and for me as a pediatrician, ultimately impact the life outcomes of our children and communities,” said Murray.

In commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday a free public screening of “From the Community to the Classroom” will be on Tuesday, January 15, 2013 from 6-8:30pm. The screening will take place at the Guild Theater, 2828 35th Street, historic Oak Park, Sacramento, CA. Please be sure to RSVP by January 10, 2013 via email fayek@springmail.com

For more information about From the Community to the Classroom’s movement, research, or film please check out the link below.